Thin plate supporting container

ABSTRACT

The present invention is directed to realize accurate positioning of a slotted plate. Disclosed is a thin plate supporting container having a container body for housing therein semiconductor wafers, a lid unit for closing the container body, and slotted plates for supporting the semiconductor wafers from both sides. There are provided an upper fitting portion for supporting an upper portion of the slotted plate, and a lower fitting portion for supporting a lower portion of the slotted plate. An upper fitting piece of the upper fitting portion has a contact face having a flat plane shape which comes into contact with the slotted plate side to thereby position the slotted plate in the front/rear direction while suppressing swing of the slotted plate, and a supporting face. The upper receiving piece has a face to be contacted having a flat plane shape, and a face to be supported. The lower fitting portion has vertical-direction positioning means for positioning the semiconductor wafer in the vertical direction, horizontal-direction positioning means for performing positioning in the horizontal direction, and a front/rear-direction positioning means for performing positioning in the front/rear direction.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims, under 35 USC 119, priority of JapaneseApplication No.2002-379340 filed on Dec. 27, 2002.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a thin plate supporting container forhousing, storing, and transporting thin plates such as semiconductorwafers, storage disks, or liquid crystal glass substrates.

2. Related Background Art

A thin plate supporting container is generally constructed by acontainer body and a lid unit for closing the upper opening of thecontainer body. In the container body, slotted plates are provided onopposite side walls, and a plurality of thin plates such assemiconductor wafers are supported between the slotted plates.

The slotted plates are detachably supported in the container body.Specifically, a supporting hole is opened on the slotted plate side anda supporting projection is provided on the container body side. By thesupporting hole and the supporting projection, the slotted plates aredetachably supported in the container body.

For example, International Publication WO99/39994 discloses thetechnique. A supporting hole is opened on a slotted plate (thin platesupporting member) side and a supporting projection to be fit in thesupporting hole is provided on the container body side. The sets eachconsisting of the supporting hole and the supporting projection areprovided in three positions.

Since the sets of the supporting hole and the supporting projection areprovided in three positions, the slotted plate is not deflected. A modeof providing the sets only in two positions at both ends of the slottedplate is also possible. In this case, however, since the supporting holeand the supporting projection have a circular shape and can rotate in astate where they fit with each other, the slotted plates may bedeflected.

Further, since the slotted plate is positioned by the supporting holeand the supporting projection, the position in the deep portion of theslotted plate may be slightly deviation. In this case, in a state wherethe thin plate supporting container is disposed longitudinally,semiconductor wafers are supported in the deep portions of the slottedplates. If there is a positional deviation in the deep portions of theslotted plates, the position of supporting a semiconductor wafer isdeviated in the thin plate supporting container.

A plurality of plate pieces constructing the slotted plate are formed soas to curve along the periphery of a semiconductor wafer close to aninlet/outlet port of semiconductor wafers. In this case, an inlet/outletportside of a plate piece largely extends toward the semiconductor waferside, so that the possibility that a semiconductor wafer to besupplied/taken out comes into contact with the plate piece is high. Tosolve the problem, the inlet/outlet port side of the plate piece has tobe widened to the container body side. In this case, however, thesemiconductor wafer supporting positions are on the deep side and anintermediate position. There is no support near the inlet/outlet port,so that supporting is unstable.

Between a semiconductor wafer housed in the thin plate supportingcontainer and the bottom plate of the thin plate supporting container, asufficient gap is provided to prevent the semiconductor wafer fromcoming into contact with the bottom plate in case of an abnormal shockof a fall of the thin plate supporting container or the like. In thiscase, however, the thin plate supporting container is tall. When thethin plate supporting container is packed in a box, the gap between thebottom of the box and the bottom of the thin plate supporting containeris small. Accordingly, an amount of cushioning which is put between thebottom of the box and the bottom of the thin plate container becomessmall. Although there is no problem in a normal transportation state, incase of occurrence of an abnormal shock due to a fall from a high placeor the like, the small amount of the cushioning becomes some trouble. Itis preferable that the amount of cushioning is larger.

A top flange and a handle are detachably attached to the thin platesupporting container. When an external force which is strong in thedirection of pulling out the top flange or handle is applied by anabnormal shock of a fall of the thin plate supporting container or thelike, there is the possibility that a locking pawl or the like comes offand the top flange or the like drops.

There is also a case such that a known latch mechanism for fixing a lidunit to the container body is caught by the container body when thelatch mechanism is unlatched to detach the lid unit.

On the back side of the lid unit, a thin plate pressing member isprovided. Fitting grooves are formed in the thin plate pressing member.Semiconductor wafers are supported by being fit in the fitting groovesone by one. The fitting groove is formed in a V shape, the angle of theV-shaped fitting groove is usually an obtuse angle, and the periphery ofa semiconductor wafer is lightly caught in the fitting groove. Althoughthere is no problem in a normal use mode, by an abnormal shock of a fallof the thin plate supporting container or the like, semiconductor wafersmay turn or be displaced. It cannot be said that the supporting force issufficient.

The thin plate pressing member is constructed by a number of pressingbands disposed in parallel for supporting semiconductor wafers one byone at predetermined intervals, and the periphery of a semiconductorwafer is supported by being fit in a fitting groove formed in thepressing band. In this case, if a semiconductor wafer comes off from thefitting groove in the pressing band, the semiconductor wafer may be fitin the gap between the pressing bands.

On the bottom of the container body placed transversely, positioningmeans for positioning the thin plate supporting container is provided.The positioning means is constructed by three fitting grooves providedat almost equal intervals. When positioning projections on a base standside fit in the fitting grooves, the container body is accuratelypositioned. Since the fitting grooves are made of the same material asthat of the thin plate supporting container, in a state where thepositioning projections are fit in the fitting grooves, the positioningprojections do not slide smoothly. There is a case that the positioningprojection stops midway in the fitting groove and accurate positioningcannot be performed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been achieved in consideration of the aboveproblems and its object is to provide a thin plate supporting containercapable of accurately, reliably, and stably supporting a thin plate,to/from which a lid unit, a top end, and the like can beattached/detached reliably and easily, and which can be accuratelypositioned.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a thinplate supporting container comprising by a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body for supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, including an upper fitting portion for supporting an upperportion of the slotted plate to the container body side, and a lowerfitting portion for supporting a lower portion of the slotted plate tothe container body side, the upper fitting portion including an upperfitting piece provided at each of at least both ends of each of the sidewalls facing each other in the container body, and an upper receivingpiece provided in a position facing the upper fitting piece, of theslotted plate, the upper fitting piece having a contact face having aflat plane shape which comes into contact with the slotted plate side tothereby position the slotted plate in the front/rear direction whilesuppressing swing of the slotted plate, and a supporting face forsupporting the contact face in a state where the contact face is incontact with the slotted plate side, and the upper receiving piecehaving a face to be contacted having a flat plane shape which comes intocontact with the contact face of the upper fitting piece to therebyposition the slotted plate in the front/rear direction while suppressingswing of the slotted plate, and a face to be supported which comes intocontact with the supporting face of the upper fitting piece to therebysupport the face to be contacted in a state where the face to becontacted is in contact with the contact face of the opposite side.

With the structure, when the contact face having the flat plane shape ofthe upper fitting piece comes into contact with the face to be contactedhaving a flat plane shape of the upper receiving piece in a state wherethe supporting face of the upper fitting piece is in contact with theface to be contacted of the upper receiving piece, the slotted plate ispositioned in the front/rear direction while suppressing swing of theslotted plate. Thus, deformation such as a deflection of the slottedplate is prevented and the slotted plate can be supported in an accurateposition.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a thinplate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body for supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, including an upper fitting portion for supporting an upperportion of the slotted plate to the container body side, and a lowerfitting portion for supporting a lower portion of the slotted plate tothe container body side, and the lower fitting portion having avertical-direction positioning means for positioning the slotted platein the vertical direction, horizontal-direction positioning means forperforming positioning in the horizontal direction, and afront/rear-direction positioning means for performing positioning in thefront/rear direction.

With the structure, the slotted plate is positioned in the verticaldirection by the vertical-direction positioning means. The slotted plateis positioned in the horizontal direction by the horizontal-directionpositioning means. The slotted plate is positioned in the front/reardirection by the front/rear-direction positioning means. In cooperationwith the upper fitting portion, the slotted plate can be accuratelypositioned and fixed.

According to a third aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the second aspect, thevertical-direction positioning means has a vertical-direction supportingpiece which is provided in a lower portion of each of side walls facingeach other in the container body and is fit in a lower portion of theslotted plate, and comes into contact with a lower end of the slottedplate, thereby performing positioning in the vertical direction of theslotted plate.

With the structure, the vertical-direction supporting piece fits withthe lower portion of the slotted plate and comes into contact with thelower end of the slotted plate, thereby accurately positioning theslotted plate in the vertical direction.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the second or third aspect, thehorizontal-direction positioning means has a notch formed in a lowerportion of the slotted plate, and a horizontal-direction supportingpiece which is provided in a lower portion of each of side walls facingeach other in the container body, fits with the notch in the lowerportion of the slotted plate, and performs positioning in the horizontaldirection of the slotted plate.

With the structure, the horizontal-direction supporting piece fits withthe notch, thereby accurately positioning the slotted plate in thehorizontal direction.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to any of the second to fourth aspects,the front/rear direction positioning means has a front/rear directionsupporting piece which is provided so as to extend from the lowerportion of the slotted plate to a back side of the slotted plate, andcontacts with the lower portion of a sidewall face of the containerbody, thereby positioning the slotted plate in the front/rear direction.

With the structure, the front/rear-direction supporting piece comes intocontact with the lower portion of the side wall face of the containerbody, thereby accurately positioning the slotted plate in the front/reardirection.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to any of the second to fifth aspects, astopper for stopping disengagement from the above of the slotted plateby being locked to the container body side is provided in a lowerportion of the slotted plate.

With the structure, in a state where the slotted plate is positioned andattached to the container body, the slotted plate is supported so as notto be disengaged from the above.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, there is provided a thinplate-supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body and supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein the slotted plate is constructed by arranging aplurality of plate pieces for supporting the plurality of thin platesone by one, the plate piece is extended from an inner side of thecontainer body to an outlet/inlet port of the thin plate and is formedso that a portion from the inner side to an intermediate position iscurved along the periphery of the thin plate and a portion from theintermediate position to the outlet/inlet port is along the containerbody side, on the inner side and the outlet/inlet port side in the platepiece, thin plate supporting projections for supporting the thin platesare provided, and the thin plate supporting projection on theoutlet/inlet port side is provided around an intersecting point of aninner periphery of the plate piece and the periphery of the thin plate.

With the structure, a thin plate is supported by the thin platesupporting projections provided on the inner side of the plate piece andaround he intersection point of the inner periphery of the plate pieceand the periphery of the thin plate, so that the thin plate can bestably supported.

According to an eighth aspect of the invention, there is provided a thinplate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body and supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein a gasket is provided between the lid unit and thecontainer body, the gasket has a base end supporting portion forsupporting the whole by being fit to the lid unit side or container bodyside, and a contact portion formed so as to extend from the base endsupporting portion, the contact portion is formed by being expanded fromthe base end supporting portion into a flange shape, making itsintermediate portion swollen upward, and making an outer peripheryfolded downward, and the intermediate portion is pressed against the lidunit side or the body side in a state where the periphery is in contactwith the container body side or the lid unit side, thereby making theperiphery closely attached to the container body side or the lid unitside by elastic force of the contact portion.

With the structure, the intermediate portion of the contact portion isformed by making its intermediate portion swollen upward and folding anouter periphery downward. When the intermediate portion is pressedagainst the lid unit side or the body side, the periphery is closelyattached to the container body side or the lid unit side by elasticforce of the contact portion. Consequently, even when the gasket isdeflected, the periphery can be closely attached to the container bodyside or the lid unit side with reliability.

According to a ninth aspect of the invention, the thin plate supportingcontainer according to the eighth invention further includes: a sealpiece which is provided on the inner side of an upper surface of a baseend supporting portion of the gasket, is extended upward, and comes intocontact with the lid unit side or container body side; and an annulargroove provided on the outer side of the seal piece and absorbingelastic deformation of the seal piece.

With the structure, the seal piece is in contact with the lid unit sideor the container body side, and elastic deformation by the contact ofthe seal piece is absorbed by the annular groove.

According to a tenth aspect of the invention, there is provided a thinplate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body and supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein a bottom plate of the container body is set so thata gap between the bottom plate and the lower end of the thin platehoused in the container body is set minimum, enough to absorb shock.

With the structure, since the gap between the bottom plate of thecontainer body and the lower end of the thin plate housed in thecontainer body is set minimum, enough to absorb shock, the size of thecontainer body can be reduced.

According to an eleventh aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the tenth aspect, height of thecontainer body is reduced only by an amount corresponding to reductionin the gap between the bottom plate of the container body and the lowerend of the thin plate housed in the container body.

With the structure, since height of the container body is reduced onlyby an amount corresponding to reduction in the gap between the bottomplate of the container body and the lower end of the thin plate housedin the container body, the size of the thin plate supporting containercan be reduced. Consequently, when packed, cushioning between the bottomof the thin plate supporting container and a packing box can beincreased, and impact absorbing capability in the case of an impact of afall or the like can be largely improved.

According to a twelfth aspect of the invention, there is provided a thinplate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body and supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein an attaching/detaching mechanism is provided fordetachably attaching any one of a top flange for a carrying mechanismand a handle held by the user or both to the container body, theattaching/detaching mechanism has a sliding and supporting means forslidably supporting the container body and the top flange or handle sothat the two members are slidable on each other, and locking means forlocking the two members slidably supported by the sliding and supportingmeans so as not to be deviated from each other, the sliding andsupporting means includes a supporting portion provided for one ofmembers and a sliding portion which is provided for the other member andis to be inserted into the supporting portion from the front side to theinner side, the locking means has a locking projection provided for theone of members or the other member, and a locking pawl provided for theother or one of members, the locking pawl is constructed by a contactportion which comes into contact with the locking projection and asupporting bar portion for supporting the contact portion, and thesupporting bar portion is formed so as to extend to the other-sidemember and to the front side of the sliding and supporting means.

With the structure, the supporting bar portion is formed so as to extendto the other-side member and to the front side of the sliding andsupporting means. Therefore, in the case where a strong force is appliedin the direction of making the top flange or the like come off, by thesupport of the supporting bar portion, disengagement of the top flangeor the like is prevented. Thus, even if a strong impact is given to thetop flange or the like, the top flange or the like does not come off.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the twelfth aspect, the contactportion of the locking pawl is provided on the side of the other-sidemember than the base end portion of the supporting bar portion.

With the structure, since the contact portion of the locking pawl isprovided on the side of the other-side member than the base end portionof the supporting bar portion, the contact portion is pressed stronglyagainst the locking projection. Consequently, even if a strong force isapplied by an impact or the like, the contact portion does not come offfrom the locking projection.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the twelfth or thirteenth aspect, twosupporting portions and two sliding portions of the sliding andsupporting means are provided in parallel, and each of the intervalbetween the supporting portions and the interval between the slidingportions is set to be small on the front side and to be large on theinner side.

With the structure, since the interval on the front side is set to besmall and the interval on the inner side is set to be large, the slidingportion can be easily fit in the supporting portion.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the invention, the thin platesupporting container according to any of the twelfth to fourteenthinventions further includes guide rails for guiding two memberssupported by the sliding and supporting means so as to slide andperforming positioning in a direction orthogonal to the slidingdirection.

With the structure, by being guided by the guide rails, the two memberssupported by the sliding and supporting means can be easilyattached/detached.

According to a sixteenth aspect of the invention, there is provided athin plate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body and supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein the lid unit is provided with a latch mechanism forfixing the lid unit to the container body, the latch mechanism isconstructed by a first arm locked to the container body side to fix thelid unit to the container body, and a second arm swingably supported bythe lid unit and swingably supporting the first arm, the first arm isconstructed by a locking pawl which is provided in a base end portion ofthe first arm and comes into contact with the container body side, and agrip which is provided at a tip portion and is positioned in a side ofthe lid unit in a state where the first and second arms swing to thelimit, and the second arm swings to a position where the locking pawl ofthe base end portion of the first arm does not come into contact withthe container body in a state where the first arm swings to the limit.

With the structure, at the time of attaching the lid unit to thecontainer body, the user grips the grip of the first arm to lift the lidunit up and covers the container body with the lid unit from above. Thegrip is positioned on a side of the lid unit in a state where the firstand second arms swing to each limit, so that the user can easily liftthe lid unit and cover the container body with the lid unit. By stillgripping the grip, the grip is pushed downward. The locking pawl in thebase end portion of the first arm comes into contact with the containerbody side and the lid unit is fixed to the container body. In the caseof detaching the lid unit from the container body, the user grips thegrips of the first arms and pulls the grips to the opposite sides. Thelocking pawl in the base end portion of the first arm is detached fromthe container body side and the lid unit is disengaged. In this state,the user still grips the grips to lift the lid unit. At this time, thelocking pawl in the base end portion swings to a position in which itdoes not come into contact with the container body in a state where thesecond arm makes the first arm swing to the limit. Consequently, the lidunit can be easily detached. In such a manner, the lid unit can beeasily attached/detached.

According to a seventeenth aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the sixteenth aspect, the first arm isopen up to 90° with respect to the second arm and the second arm is openup to 35° with respect to the container body.

With the configuration, the grip is supported in a side of the lid unitand is in a position at which the grip is easily gripped, and is open toa position where the locking pawl comes not come into contact with thecontainer body.

According to an eighteenth aspect of the invention, there is provided athin plate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body for supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein a thin plate pressing member is provided on the backface of the lid unit, the thin plate pressing member for supporting thinplates by pressing an upper portion of a thin plate housed in thecontainer body when the lid unit is attached to the container body,fitting grooves in each of which the thin plate is fit and supported areprovided for the thin plate pressing member, the fitting groove beingformed at an acute angle so as to catch the periphery of the thin plate.

With the structure, the fitting groove for supporting a thin plate isprovided for the thin plate pressing member and is formed at an acuteangle. Consequently, even when a strong impact is given to the thinplate supporting container, the periphery of the thin plate is caught bythe fitting groove formed at an acute angle, rotation of the thin plateis prevented, and the thin plate can be reliably supported.

According to a nineteenth aspect of the invention, there is provided athin plate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body and supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein a thin plate pressing member is provided on the backface of the lid unit, the thin plate pressing member for supporting thinplates by pressing an upper portion of a thin plate housed in thecontainer body when the lid unit is attached to the container body, thethin plate pressing member has a number of pressing bands which arearranged in parallel, comes into contact with the periphery of the thinplate, and supports the thin plates at predetermined intervals one byone, and the pressing bands are formed in a wave shape along theperipheries of the thin plates.

With the structure, since the pressing bands are formed along theperipheries of thee thin plates, even when the thin plate is displaced,it does not enter the gap between the pressing bands.

According to a twentieth aspect of the invention, there is provided athin plate supporting container comprising a container body for housingtherein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit for closing the containerbody, and slotted plates provided on side walls facing each other in thecontainer body for supporting the thin plates housed on the inside fromboth sides, wherein body positioning means for positioning the wholecontainer body is provided on the bottom of the container body disposedtransversely, and the body positioning means includes V-shaped grooveplate pieces constructing V-shaped grooves provided in three positionsin three directions on the bottom of the container body, and supportingstands for supporting the V-shaped groove plate pieces.

With the structure, since the V-shaped groove plate piece is attached asa separate member to the supporting stand of the body positioning means,the V-shaped groove plate piece made of a material suited to thematerial of the projection on the other side can be easily attached.

According to a twenty-first aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the twenties aspect, the V-shapedgroove plate piece is made of a material having low surface frictionresistance.

With the structure, when the projection on the other side is fit in theV-shaped groove plate piece made of the material having low surfacefriction resistance, the projection smoothly slides on the V-shapedgroove plate piece and is fit in the accurate position. Thus, accuratepositioning can be achieved.

According to a twenty-second aspect of the invention, in the thin platesupporting container according to the twenties or twenty-first aspect,the V-shaped groove plate piece is detachably attached to the supportingstand.

With the structure, since the V-shaped groove plate piece is detachablyattached, the V-shaped groove plate piece can be easily replaced inaccordance with the material of the projection on the other side.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional perspective view showing a thin plate supportingcontainer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the thin plate supporting containeraccording to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing, from bottom side, the thin platesupporting container according to the embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a supporting stand of bodypositioning means.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state where a V-shaped grooveplate piece is attached to the supporting stand of the body positioningmeans.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the V-shaped groove plate piece ofthe body positioning means.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing, from the bottom side, the V-shapedgroove plate piece of the body positioning means.

FIG. 8 is a sectional perspective view showing a state where theV-shaped groove plate piece is attached to the supporting stand of thebody positioning means.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a top flange according to theembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing, from the bottom side, the topflange according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view showing the container bodyaccording to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the top flange side of anattaching/detaching mechanism according to the embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 13 is a sectional perspective view showing a state where the topflange is attached to the container body.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a state where the top flange isattached to the container body.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a main portion showing a state wherethe top flange is attached to the container body.

FIG. 16 is a cross sectional view of a main portion showing a statewhere a slotted plate is attached to the container body.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing the slotted plate.

FIG. 18 is a plan view showing the slotted plate.

FIG. 19 is an enlarged plan view showing the slotted plate.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing an upper fitting portion of thecontainer body.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing a lower fitting portion of thecontainer body.

FIG. 22 is an enlarged plan view showing the upper fitting portion ofthe container body.

FIG. 23 is an enlarged perspective view showing the lower fittingportion of the container body.

FIG. 24 is a perspective view showing a thin plate pressing member.

FIG. 25 is a plan view showing the thin plate pressing member.

FIG. 26 is a cross sectional view showing a fitting groove in the thinplate pressing member.

FIG. 27 is a perspective view showing a latch mechanism.

FIG. 28 is a perspective view showing a stopper of the latch mechanism.

FIG. 29 is a cross sectional view of a main portion showing a gasket.

FIG. 30 is a cross sectional view of a main portion showing a base endsupporting portion of the gasket.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the invention will be described hereinbelow withreference to the appended drawings. A thin plate supporting container ofthe present invention is suitable as a container used in processes ofhousing, storing, transporting, and producing thin plates such assemiconductor wafers, storage disks, and liquid crystal glasssubstrates. In the embodiment, a thin film supporting container forhousing semiconductor wafers will be described as an example.

A thin plate supporting container 1 according to an embodiment has, asshown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a container body 2 for housing therein aplurality of semiconductor wafers S (refer to FIG. 16), two slottedplates 3 provided on opposite side walls in the container body 2 andsupporting the housed semiconductor wafers S from both sides, a lid unit4 for closing an opening 2F of the container body 2, a top flange 5 heldby an arm of a transporting apparatus (not shown), and a handle 6 forcarry which is gripped by the user when the user carries the thin platesupporting container 1.

The container body 2 is formed in an almost cube shape. The containerbody 2 comprises four side walls 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D serving asperipheral walls and a bottom plate 2E when the container body 2 is setlongitudinally (in a state where the bottom plate 2E is down), and anopening 2F is provided at the top of the container body 2. Ribs 9 forreinforcement and the like are provided for each of the side walls 2A,2B, 2C, and 2D. When the container body 2 is installed so as to face arobot (not shown) for carrying wafers in a manufacturing line ofsemiconductor wafers S or the like, it is positioned with accuracy andset on a stand transversely (the state of FIG. 2). On the outside of theside wall 2A which serves as the bottom transversely, body positioningmeans 11 of the thin plate supporting container 1 is provided. The topflange 5 is detachably attached by an attaching/detaching mechanism 12to the outside of the side wall 2B serving as the ceiling transversely.To the outside of the side walls 2C and 2D serving as side wallstransversely, the handles 6 for carry are detachably attached.

The body positioning means 11 is constructed by, as shown in FIG. 3,three V-shaped fitting grooves 13. The fitting grooves 13 are a firstfitting groove 13A aligned in the vertical direction of the containerbody 2 and second and third fitting grooves 13B and 13C each inclined byan angle (almost 60 degrees) from the vertical direction of thecontainer body 2. The three grooves 13 are set to have high dimensionalprecision in accordance with a standard. When the fitting grooves 13A,13B, and 13C of the body positioning means 11 fit with fittingprojections (not shown) of a stand used in a semiconductor fabricatingprocess, the thin plate supporting container 1 is mounted in accurateposition, and the semiconductor wafers S are taken in or inserted by awafer carrying robot.

Each of the fitting grooves 13 is constructed by a V-shaped groove platepiece 15 and a supporting stand 16.

The V-shaped groove plate piece 15 is a member as a component of thefitting groove 13. The V-shaped groove plate piece 15 is constructed bya frame 17, inclined plates 18, and locking pawls 19.

The frame 17 is a member for supporting the inclined plate 18 and thelocking pawl 19. The frame 17 is formed in a rectangular shape so as tofit with a notch 21C for fitting of the supporting stand 16 which willbe described later. In both end portions in the longitudinal directionof the frame 17, supporting plate fitting notches 17A which fit with endportion supporting plates 22 of the supporting stand 16 which will bedescribed later to stably support the whole container are provided. Theinclined plates 18 are members serving as inclined surfaces of thefitting groove 13. Two inclined plates 18 are provided for one frame 17.In a state where the base end portion of each of the inclined plates 18is fixed to the frame 17, the inclined plates 18 extend downward to theinside. The thickness of the inclined plate 18 is set in relation withthe supporting stand 16 so that the upper surface (the upper surface inFIG. 6) has a predetermined dimension. The V-shaped groove plate piece15 is made of a material having low surface friction resistance, so thata fitting projection of a mounting stand used in the semiconductorfabricating process slides smoothly to perform accurate positioning ofthe thin plate supporting container 1. An example of the material isPBT.

The locking pawls 19 are members for fixing the V-shaped groove platepiece 15 to the supporting stand 16. The locking pawls 19 extend fromthe center portion of the inclined plate 18 downward to the inside. Thetip of the locking pawl 19 is folded back to the perpendiculardirection, and a nail portion 19A at the tip of the locking pawl 19 islocked by a locking projection 23 of the supporting stand 16 which willbe described later. In such a manner, the V-shaped groove plate piece 15is detachably attached to the supporting stand 16. Selectively, theV-shaped groove plate piece 15 of a material (material having lowsurface friction resistance) matched with the material of the fittingprojection of the mounting stage used in the semiconductor fabricatingprocess is attached. It makes the fitting projection on the other sideeasily slide in the V-shaped groove plate piece 15 to perform accuratepositioning.

The supporting stand 16 is a member for supporting the V-shaped grooveplate piece 15. The supporting stand 16 is constructed by an inclinationsupporting plate 21, an end-portion supporting plate 22, and a lockingprojection 23.

The inclination supporting plate 21 is a member for accuratelypositioning and supporting the inclined plate 18 of the V-shaped grooveplate piece 15. Four plate pieces each having a U shape in plan view arearranged and inclined faces 21A formed along the V-shaped groove on theinner side of the four plate pieces come into direct contact with andsupport the inclined plates 18 of the V-shaped groove plate piece 15.The dimensions of the inclined face 21A are accurately set so that theupper surface of the inclined plate 18 of the V-shaped groove platepiece 15 supported by the inclined faces 21A come to have predetermineddimensions. Since mainly the tip portion of the fitting projection ofthe mounting stand used in the semiconductor fabricating process comesinto contact with the inclined plate 18, an inner portion 21B of theinclined face 21A having a U shape in plan view is finished to have moreaccurate dimensions. In an upper end portion of the inclinationsupporting plate 21, the fitting notch 21C is provided. The fittingnotch 21C is a notch with which the frame 17 of the V-shaped grooveplate piece 15 fits. The V-shaped groove plate piece 15 is supported byeight fitting notches 21C.

The end-portion supporting plates 22 are members for supporting bothends in the longitudinal direction of the V-shaped groove thin platepiece 15 which fits with the fitting notches 21C of the inclinationsupporting plates 21. The end-portion supporting plate 22 is formed asan upright plate and is provided for each of the both ends of theinclination supporting plates 21. The upper end portion of theend-portion supporting plate 22 fits with the supporting plate fittingnotch 17A of the frame 17 of the V-shaped groove plate 15, therebystably supporting the V-shaped groove plate piece 15 while preventing adeviation in the longitudinal direction of the V-shaped groove platepiece 15.

The locking projection 23 is a member for supporting the V-shaped grooveplate piece 15. The locking projection 23 is provided in the centerportion between the inclined supporting plates 21. The upper end portionof the locking projection 23 is enlarged and locked by the nail portion19A of the locking pawl 19 of the V-shaped groove plate piece 15.

The top flange 5 is constructed by, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a flangeportion 25 and a body portion 26. The flange portion 25 is a member tobe gripped by an arm (not shown) of the transporting apparatus. In afactory or the like, the top flange 5 is gripped by the arm of thetransporting apparatus and the thin plate supporting container 1 istransported. The body portion 26 is a member for supporting the flangeportion 25 and attaching it to the container body 2. On the back face ofthe body portion 26, one of members of the attaching/detaching mechanism12 which will be described later is provided.

In the center portion of the side wall 2B of the container body 2, theother member of the attaching/detaching mechanism 12 for detachablyattaching the top flange 5 is provided. The attaching/detachingmechanism 12 is constructed as shown by FIG. 1 and FIGS. 11 to 15.Specifically, the attaching/detaching mechanism 12 is constructed by asliding and supporting means 27, locking means 28, and guide rails 29.

The sliding and supporting means 27 is a member for slidably supportingthe container body 2 and the top flange 5. The sliding and supportingmeans 27 is constructed by a supporting portion 30 provided on thecontainer body 2 side and a sliding portion 31 provided on the topflange 5 side and inserted into the supporting portion 30 from the frontside to the inner side (from the end on the right side to the end on theleft side in FIG. 11). The supporting portion 30 is made by two railmembers arranged in parallel on the outer surface of the side wall 2B ofthe container body 2. In the rail members, grooves which are openoutward (the grooves provided on the outer sides of the two rail membersand open to opposite sides) are formed. The sliding portion 31 is madeby rail members provided in positions corresponding to the supportingportions 30 in the body portion 26 of the top flange 5. In the railmembers, grooves which are open to the inside are provided. Thesupporting portion 30 and the sliding portion 31 are set so that theinterval between the rail members on the front side (the right side inFIG. 11) is narrow and the interval on the deep side is wide. With theconfiguration, the sliding portion 31 can easily engage with thesupporting portion 30.

The locking means 28 is a member for locking the container body 2 andthe top flange 5 so as not to be deviated from each other, which areslidably supported by the sliding and supporting means 27. The lockingmeans 28 is constructed by locking projections 33 provided on thecontainer body 2 side and locking pawls 34 provided on the top flange 5side. Two locking projections 33 are provided for the side wall 2B. Eachof the locking projections 33 is provided in the center between bothends of the two rail members of the supporting portion 30. The surfaceof the locking projection 33 facing to the inner side (the left side inFIG. 11) serves as a perpendicular contact surface, and the lockingprojection 33 supports the locking pawl 34 so as not to be deviated tothe front side (the right side in FIG. 11).

The locking pawl 34 is a member which is locked by the lockingprojection 33 to prevent the top flange 5 from coming off. Two lockingpawls 34 are provided for the body portion 26 of the top flange 5.Specifically, an inner-side locking pawl 34A and a front-side lockingpawl 34B are provided. The inner-side locking pawl 34A is constructed bya contact portion 36 which comes into contact with the lockingprojection 33 on the inner side, and a supporting bar portion 37 forsupporting the contact portion 36. The contact portion 36 comes intocontact with the locking projection 33 by using a surface facing to thefront as a perpendicular contact face to thereby support the top flange5 so as not to be deviated to the front side. The supporting bar portion37 is formed so as to extend to the container body 2 side and also tothe inner side.

The front-side locking-pawl 34B is constructed by a contact portion 38which comes into contact with the locking projection 33 on the frontside and a supporting bar portion 39 for supporting the contact portion38. The contact portion 38 comes into contact with the lockingprojection 33 by using a surface facing to the front side as aperpendicular contact face to thereby support the locking pawl 34B so asnot to be deviated to the front side. The supporting bar portion 39 isformed so as to extend to the container body 2 side and also to thefront side. By the supporting bar portion 39, the contact portion 38 isprovided near to the container body 2 side more than the base endportion of the supporting bar portion 39. Accordingly, in the case wherea force is applied to the top flange 5 in the direction of making thetop flange 5 come off, the contact portion 38 is pressed stronglyagainst the locking projection 33. Thus, even if a strong force isapplied by an impact or the like, the contact portion 38 is reliablyprevented from coming off from the locking projection 33. Accordingly,by the supporting bar portion 39, detachment of the top flange 5 issuppressed.

The guide rails 29 are members for performing positioning in a directionorthogonal to the sliding direction by guiding sliding of the top flange5 supported to the container body 2 by the sliding and supporting means27. The guide rails 29 are constructed by a fitting rail 29A and areceiving rail 29B. Two fitting rails 29A each constructed by one railmember are provided on the inner side of the two rails members of thesupporting portion 30 in the side wall 2B of the container body 2. Thereceiving rail 29B is constructed by two rail members sandwiching thefitting rail 29A from both sides and is provided on the top flange 5side opposite to the fitting rail 29A. The fitting rail 29A and thereceiving rail 29B are provided in parallel with each other.Accordingly, the fitting rail 29A fits in the receiving rail 29B tosupport sliding from the front side to the inner side and sliding fromthe inner side to the front side of the top flange 5, thereby enablingthe top flange 5 to be easily attached/detached to/from the containerbody 2.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the handle 6 comprises two gripping rods 41and 42. The gripping rods 41 and 42 are set at angles different fromeach other. Accordingly, the user selectively grips one of the twogripping rods 41 and 42 according to the orientation (portrait orlandscape orientation) of the thin plate supporting container 1 at thetime of carry. The angle of one of the gripping rods 41 and 42 is set toan angle which is optimum to the case where the thin plate supportingcontainer 1 is carried longitudinally and the other angle is set to anangle which is optimum to the case where the thin plate supportingcontainer 1 is carried transversely. Specific angles are properly setaccording to various conditions such as the size, weight, and the likeof the thin plate supporting container 1. The handle 6 is detachablyattached to each of the side walls 2C and 2D by an attaching/detachingmechanism having the same structure as that of the attaching/detachingmechanism 12.

The bottom plate 2E comprises legs 44 and a cover plate 45 as shown inFIGS. 3 and 16. The legs 44 are members for supporting the containerbody 2. The legs 44 are constructed by projected bars formed along theoverall width of two opposite sides of the bottom plate 2E. The coverplate 45 is a member for covering the lower side of the semiconductorwafers S housed in the container body 2. The cover plate 45 is providedso as to be curved downward between the legs 44. The cover plate 45 isset so that the gap “t” between the lower end of the semiconductor waferS housed in the container body 2 and the cover plate 45 becomes acertain range, namely, the gap is set minimum so as to fully absorb theshock, for example, 3 mm for the following reason. Since theinstallation precision and supporting rigidity of the slotted plates 3which will be described later have been improved, even in case of astrong impact due to a fall or the like of the thin plate supportingcontainer 1, the semiconductor wafer S can be supported with sufficientstrength and a downward deviation can be suppressed. In addition, theheight of the container body 2 is decreased and the size is reduced onlyby an amount corresponding to the reduction in the gap between thebottom plate 2E and the lower end of the semiconductor wafer S.Consequently, when the thin plate supporting container 1 is packed, thegap between the bottom of the thin plate supporting container 1 and apacking box is increased as compared with the conventional case, so thatcushioning can be increased and the capability of absorbing a shock duea fall or the like can be largely improved.

In an upper end portion of the container body 2, as shown in FIG. 1, alid unit receiving step 47 with which the lid unit 4 fits is provided.The lid unit receiving step 47 is formed by enlarging the upper endportion of the container body 2 to the dimensions of the lid unit 4. Thelid unit 4 is attached to the lid unit receiving step 47 by fitting withthe inner side of a perpendicular plate portion 47A of the lid unitreceiving step 47 and coming into contact with a horizontal plateportion 47B. Further, a gasket 80 (refer to FIG. 29) attached to theunder face of the lid unit 4 comes into contact with the horizontalplate portion 47B, thereby keeping air tightness in the thin platesupporting container 1. On the inside of the perpendicular plate portion47A of the lid unit receiving step 47, a fitting hole 48 is provided forfixing a special lid unit (not shown), used in the semiconductorfabricating process, to the container body 2 side. The fitting holes 48are provided at four corners of the lid unit receiving step 47. Theposition and shape of the fitting hole 48 are properly set according tothe special lid unit used in the semiconductor fabricating process.

The slotted plate 3 is, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 16 to 23, a memberfor supporting the housed semiconductor wafers S from both sides. Theslotted plate 3 is provided for each of the opposite side walls 2C and2D in the container body 2. The slotted plate 3 is detachably attachedto the inside of the container body 2. The slotted plate 3 isconstructed mainly by a number of plate pieces 50 disposed in parallelat predetermined interval and supporting the wafers S one by one, and asupporting plate 51 for integrally supporting the plate pieces 50 in astate where the plate pieces 50 are disposed in parallel atpredetermined intervals.

The plate piece 50 is provided so as to extend from the inner side ofthe container body 2 to an outlet/inlet port (opening 2F) of thesemiconductor wafers S. The plate piece 50 is formed so that a portionfrom the inner side to an intermediate position is curved along theperiphery of the semiconductor wafer S and a portion from theintermediate position to the outlet/inlet port is along the containerbody 2 side. On the inner side and the outlet/inlet port side in theplate piece 50, thin plate supporting projections 52 for supporting thesemiconductor wafer S are provided. The thin plate supporting projection52 on the outlet/inlet portion side is provided around an intersectingpoint of the inner periphery of the plate piece 50 and the periphery ofthe semiconductor wafer S. By providing the thin plate supportingprojection 52 close to the outlet/inlet port as much as possible, thesemiconductor wafer S is stable supported.

Between the plate pieces 50 on the inner side, a V-shaped groove 53 isprovided. When the container body 2 is placed longitudinally, thesemiconductor wafer S is fit into the V-shaped groove 53 and comes intocontact with the bottom portion of the V-shaped groove 53. Thesemiconductor wafer S is supported in a center portion.

Two handles 54 are provided on upper portion of the slotted plate 3. Thehandles 54 are portions grabbed by the user to lift the slotted plate 3.The slotted plate 3 is lifted by taking the two handles 54 between theuser's fingers.

The supporting plates 51 are provided in three positions, innermost side(lower left side in FIG. 17), an intermediate portion, and an inlet side(upper right side in FIG. 17) of each plate piece 50, and integrallysupport the plate pieces 50.

The slotted plate 3 is detachably fixed to each of the side walls 2C and2D which face each other in the container body 2 by an upper fittingportion 55 and a lower fitting portion 56.

The upper fitting portion 55 is a member for supporting the upperportion of the slotted plate 3 to the container body 2. The upperfitting portion 55 is constructed by an upper fitting piece 57 and anupper receiving piece 58. The upper, fitting piece 57 is provided foreach of the side walls 2C and 2D which face each other in the containerbody 2. A step 59 is provided in an intermediate position in thevertical direction of each of the side walls 2C and 2D. In the step 59,the four upper fitting pieces 57 are provided. It is sufficient toprovide two upper fitting pieces 57 at both ends. According to the sizeof the slotted plate 3 or the like, three or five or more upper fittingpieces 57 may be provided. The upper fitting piece 57 is formed in a Ushape in plan view. The U-shaped upper fitting piece 57 includes acontact face 57A and a supporting face 57B. The contact face 57A is apart having a flat face shape which comes into contact with the slottedplate 3 side to perform positioning of the slotted plate 3 in thelongitudinal direction (the direction from the left inner side to theright front side in FIG. 20) while preventing turn of the slotted plate3. Since the slotted plate 3 is positioned in the longitudinal directionby using the contact face 57A as a reference, the contact face 57A isformed in accurate position and dimensions. The supporting face 57B is apart for maintaining a state where the contact face 57A is in contactwith the slotted plate 3 side.

The upper receiving piece 58 is a member which fits with the upperfitting piece 57 to perform positioning in the longitudinal direction ofthe slotted plate 3. The upper receiving piece 58 is provided in aposition facing the upper fitting piece 57 in the slotted plate 3.Specifically, the upper receiving piece 58 is constructed by a face 58to be contacted and a face 58B to be supported. The face 58A to becontacted is a part with which the contact face 57A of the upper fittingpiece 57 comes into contact to perform positioning of the slotted plate3 in the longitudinal direction while suppressing turn of the slottedplate 3. The face 58A to be contacted is formed in a flat face shape andsuppresses turn between the face 58A and the upper fitting piece 57. Theface 58A to be contacted is formed at the tip of a projected bar 61provided in a position corresponding to the contact face 57A of thefitting piece 57 in the slotted plate 3. The contact face 58A of theprojected bar 61 comes into contact with the contact face 57A of theupper fitting piece 57, thereby positioning the slotted plate 3 in thelongitudinal direction. In this example, two projected bars 61 come intocontact with the contact face 57A of one upper fitting piece 57. Thereason why the shape of the projected bar 61 is used is to preventshrink at the time of molding and improve dimensional precision.

The face 58B to be supported is a member which comes into contact withthe supporting face 57B of the upper fitting piece 57 to thereby supportthe contacted face 58A in a state where the contacted face 58A is incontact with the contact face 57A of the upper fitting piece 57. Theface 58B to be supported is formed on the rear face of a band-shapedplate member 63 supported on the slotted plate 3 side by a plurality ofsupporting plate pieces 62. The overall width of the plate member 63serves as the face 58B to be supported. The supporting face 57B can comeinto contact with the plate member 63 in any position and can supportthe slotted plate 3.

The contact faces 57A and 58A are in contact with each other while beingsupported by the supporting faces 57A and 57B, thereby preventingdeformation such as deflection of the slotted plate 3 due to turn of thesupporting portion of the slotted plate 3 and enabling accuratepositioning in the longitudinal direction of the slotted plate 3 to beperformed. In the upper fitting portion 55, only positioning in thelongitudinal direction of the slotted plate 3 is performed. Positioningin the other direction is carried out by the lower fitting portion 56.

The lower fitting portion 56 is a member for supporting a lower portionof the slotted plate 3 to the container body 2 side. The lower fittingportion 56 has a vertical-direction positioning means 65 for performingpositioning in the vertical direction of the slotted plate 3, ahorizontal-direction positioning means 66 for performing positioning inthe horizontal direction, and a front/rear direction positioning means67 for performing positioning in the front/rear direction. By the means,the lower portion of the slotted plate 3 is accurately positioned in thevertical, horizontal, and front/rear directions and, also in cooperationwith the upper fitting portion 55, the slotted plate 3 is accuratelypositioned and fixed to the container body 2.

The vertical-direction positioning means 65 is constructed by avertical-direction supporting piece 68 and a lower plate 69.

The vertical-direction supporting piece 68 is a member which is providedin the lower portion of each of the side walls 2C and 2D facing eachother in the container body 2, fits in the lower portion of the slottedplate 3 and comes into contact with the lower end of the slotted plate3, thereby positioning the slotted plate 3 in the vertical direction.The vertical-direction supporting piece 68 has a fitting notch 68A whichfits with the slotted plate 3. The dimension in the vertical directionof the fitting notch 68A is accurately set to position the slotted plate3 in the vertical direction.

The lower plate 69 is a member for accurately positioning the slottedplate 3 in the vertical direction by fitting with the fitting notch 68Aof the vertical-direction supporting piece 68. The lower plate 69 is aplate member extended downward from the lower portion of the slottedplate 3. Since the lower end face of the lower plate 69 is a part whichfits with and in direct contact with the fitting notch 68A, thedimension in the vertical direction is accurately set.

The horizontal-direction positioning means 66 is constructed by a notch71 and a horizontal-direction supporting piece 72.

The notch 71 is provided as a notch which opens downward in the lowerplate 69 of the slotted plate 3.

The horizontal-direction supporting piece 72 is a member which isprovided between the vertical-direction supporting pieces 68 in each ofthe lower portions of the side walls 2C and 2D facing each other in thecontainer body 2 and is fit in the notch 72 in the lower portion of theslotted plate 3, thereby positioning the slotted plate 3 in thehorizontal direction. The horizontal-direction supporting piece 72 isformed in a wedge shape which is fit in the notch 71. By the fitting ofthe horizontal-direction supporting piece 72 to the notch 71, theslotted plate 3 is positioned accurately in the horizontal direction.

The front/rear-direction positioning means 67 is constructed by afront/rear-direction supporting plate piece 73. The front/rear-directionsupporting plate piece 73 is made of a band-shaped plate member. Thefront/rear-direction supporting plate piece 73 made of a band-shapedplate member is provided below the slotted plate 3 so as to extendhorizontally to the back side of the slotted plate 3 and come intocontact with the lower portion of each of the side walls 2C and 2D ofthe container body 2, thereby positioning the slotted plate 3 in thefront/rear direction.

A stopper 75 is provided in the lower portion of the slotted plate 3.The stopper 75 is a member for stopping disengagement to the up of theslotted plate 3. The stopper 75 is constructed by a locking piece 76 anda locking projection 77. The locking piece 76 is constructed by aband-shaped elastic plate piece 76A extended downward from the lower endof the slotted plate 3 and a locking pawl 76B provided on the lockingprojection 77 side of the elastic plate piece 76A. The lockingprojection 77 is a member to be locked by the locking pawl 76B of thelocking piece 76. The locking pawl 76B of the locking piece 76 providedbetween the vertical-direction supporting pieces 68 of each of the sidewalls 2C and 2D fits with the locking projection 77, thereby preventingthe slotted plate 3 from coming off to the above.

The lid unit 4 is structured as shown in FIG. 2 and FIGS. 27 to 30. Thelid unit 4 is formed in a saucer shape which is open upward.

The gasket 80 is provided between the lid unit 4 and the container body2. The gasket 80 is constructed by a base end supporting portion 81 anda contact portion 82.

The base end supporting portion 81 is a part which is fit in the fittinggroove 4A on the lid unit 4 side to support the whole. The base endsupporting portion 81 has an almost trapezoid shape in cross section. Onthe inside of the upper surface of the base end supporting portion 81, aseal piece 83 and an annular groove 84 are provided. The seal piece 83extends upward and comes into contact with the lid unit 4 side to keepair tightness. The annular groove 84 is provided on the outer side ofthe seal piece 83 and absorbs elastic deformation of the seal piece 83.

The contact portion 82 is formed by being expanded from the base endsupporting portion 81 into a flange shape. The contact portion 82 has ashape such that its intermediate portion is swollen upward (to the lidunit 4 side) and its outer periphery is folded downward (to thecontainer body 2 side), in cross section. The portion 82A swollen upwardin the contact portion 82 serves as a portion pressed by the lid unit 4,and the periphery is a portion which comes into contact with thecontainer body 2 side. Accordingly, the intermediate portion to bepressed is pressed by the lid unit 4 in a state where the periphery isin contact with the container body 2 side, and the periphery is closelyattached to the container body by elastic force of the contact portion82.

To the sides facing the side walls 2C and 2D of the container body 2, ofthe lid unit 4, a latch mechanism 86 is provided. The latch mechanism 86is a mechanism for fixing the lid unit 4 to the container body 2. Thelatch mechanism 86 is constructed by a first arm 87 and a second arm 88.The first arm 87 is a member for fixing the lid unit 4 to the containerbody 2 by directly being locked by a receiving portion (not shown) onthe container body 2 side. The second arm 88 is a member which isswingably supported by the lid unit 4 and swingably supports the firstarm 87.

The first arm 87 has a locking pawl 90 and a grip 91. The locking pawl90 is provided for the base end portion and comes into contact with thereceiving portion on the container body 2 side to thereby fix the lidunit 4 to the container body 2 side. The grip 91 is a member for liftingthe lid unit 4. The grip 91 is formed at the tip of the first arm 87, ina shape which is easily gripped by a hand. The first and second arms 87and 88 are set in a position in a side of the lid unit 4 so that thegrip 91 is easily gripped in a state where each of the first and secondarms 87 and 88 swing to each limit. It is also set that, in a statewhere the first and second arms 87 and 88 swing to the limit, thelocking pawl 90 of the base end of the first arm 87 does not come intocontact with the container body 2. Specifically, the first arm 87 isopen up to 90° with respect to the second arm 88 and the second arm 88is open up to 35° with respect to the container body 2. The first arm 87is supported at 90° while its tip side is in contact in a state wherethe base end portion is pivoted by the L-shaped second arm 88. Thesecond arm 88 is supported at 35° by a stopper 92.

On the back face of the lid unit 4, a thin plate pressing member 94 isprovided. The thin plate pressing member 94 is a member for pressing andsupporting the upper portion of the semiconductor wafer S housed in thecontainer body 2 when the lid unit 4 is attached to the container body2.

The thin plate pressing member 94 is formed in an almost rectangularshape as shown in FIGS. 24 to 26. Both ends in the longitudinaldirection and the center portion of the thin plate pressing member 94are fixed to the back face of the lid unit 4, and the portions betweenthe both ends and the center portion serve as pressing portions 95. Thepressing portion 95 is a member for elastically pressing and supportingthe upper portion of the semiconductor wafer S and is constructed by anumber of pressing bands 96 arranged in parallel. The pressing band 96is an elastic member and is formed so as to be curved downward. Further,the pressing band 96 is formed in a wave shape in plan view (the shapein the state of FIG. 25) along the periphery of the semiconductor waferS to prevent the semiconductor wafer S from entering the gap between thepressing bands 96.

The shape of a side face of the pressing band 96 is an inverted mountainshape. In two apex positions of the mountain-shaped portion, fittinggrooves 97 for supporting each semiconductor wafer S are provided atpredetermined intervals. The fitting groove 97 is formed at an acuteangle so as to sandwich the periphery of the semiconductor wafer S.

[Operation]

The thin plate supporting container 1 constructed as described above isused as follows.

In a state where a number of semiconductor wafers S are inserted in thecontainer body 2 and the lid unit 4 is attached, the thin platesupporting container 1 is transported to a semiconductor fabricatingfactory or the like. The lid unit 4 is detached from the thin platesupporting container 1 carried in the semiconductor fabricating factoryor the like, a special lid unit for the semiconductor fabricatingfactory or the like is attached to the thin plate supporting container 1and the resultant is carried into a fabricating process.

The upper portion of the slotted plate 3 attached in the container body2 is supported by the upper fitting portion 55. The upper fitting piece57 fits with the upper receiving piece 58 of the slotted plate 3.Accordingly, when the contact face 57A comes into contact with the face58A to be contacted in a state where the supporting face 57B of theupper fitting piece 57 is in contact with the face 58B to be supportedof the upper receiving piece 58, the upper portion of the slotted plate3 is securely supported on the container body 2 side. Consequently, theslotted plate 3 does not swing and is securely supported in thesupporting portion, and positioning in the front/rear direction of theslotted plate 3 is performed. In such a manner, deformation such asdeflection of the slotted plate 3 is repressed and the slotted plate 3is supported in an accurate position.

The lower portion of the slotted plate 3 is supported by the lowerfitting portion 56.

First, the slotted plate 3 is positioned in the vertical direction bythe vertical-direction positioning means 65. The lower end face of thelower plate 69 of the vertical-direction positioning means 65 fits inthe fitting notch 68A of the vertical-direction supporting piece 68,thereby accurately positioning of the slotted plate 3 in the verticaldirection is performed.

In this case, the notch 71 on the slotted plate 3 side of thehorizontal-direction positioning means 66 fits with thehorizontal-direction supporting piece 72 on the container body 2 side,thereby positioning the slotted plate 3 in the horizontal direction.

Further, the front/rear-direction supporting piece 73 of thefront/rear-direction positioning means 67 comes into contact with thelower portion of each of the side walls 2C and 2D of the container body2 to perform positioning of the slotted plate 3 in the front/reardirection.

At this time, the locking piece 76 of the stopper 75 fits with thelocking projection 77 to support the slotted plate 3 so as not to comeoff to the above.

The slotted plate 3 can be thereby accurately positioned with the upperfitting portion 55 and the lower fitting portion 56 and easily fixed. Inthe case of detaching the slotted plate 3, the locking piece 76 ispulled to the front side to move the slotted plate 3 upward. It enablesthe slotted plate 3 to be easily detached.

The plate piece 50 of the slotted plate 3 is formed so that a portionfrom the inner side to an intermediate position is curved along theperiphery of the semiconductor wafer S and a portion from theintermediate position to the outlet/inlet port is formed along thecontainer body 2 side. Thus, the semiconductor wafer S can be smoothlyinserted/taken in/out the container body 2 and can be prevented fromcoming into contact with the plate piece 50.

The thin plate supporting projection 52 for supporting the semiconductorwafer S is provided on each of the inner side and outlet/inlet side ofthe plate piece 50, and the thin plate supporting projection 52 on theoutlet/inlet port side is provided around the intersection between theinner periphery of the plate piece 50 and the periphery of thesemiconductor wafer S, so that the semiconductor wafer S inserted in thecontainer body 2 can be stably supported.

The upward swollen portion 82A of the contact portion 82 is pressed withthe lid unit 4 in a state where the lid unit 4 is attached to thecontainer body 2 so that the periphery of the gasket 80 of the lid unit4 is closely attached to the container body 2 side. Consequently, evenwhen the gasket 80 is deflected and a gap occurs between the gasket 80and the container body 2, the peripheral portion can be closely attachedto the container body 2 side with reliability. In such a manner, thecontainer body 2 is sealed with the gasket 80.

In the base end supporting portion 81, the seal piece 83 comes intocontact with the lid unit 4 side and elastic deformation caused by thecontact of the seal piece 83 is absorbed by the annular groove 84 tokeep air tightness between the gasket 80 and the lid unit 4. Further,the upward swollen portion 82A of the contact portion 82 is also closelyattached to the lid unit 4 to keep air tightness between the gasket 80and the lid unit 4.

Since the gap between the cover plate 45 for the container body 2 andthe lower end of the semiconductor wafer S housed in the container body2 is set minimum so as to fully absorb the shock, the size of thecontainer body 2 is reduced. When the size of the container body 2 isreduced, the size of the thin plate supporting container 1 itself isaccordingly reduced. Consequently, when packed, the gap between thebottom of the thin plate supporting container 1 and a packing cartonincreases. The cushioning material in the larger gap can be alsoincreased, and the shock absorbing capability in case of a shock of afall or the like can be largely improved.

In the attaching/detaching mechanism 12 for supporting the top flange 5and the handle 6 for carry, at the time of attaching the top flange 5 orthe like, the receiving rail 29B engages with the fitting rail 29A, thesliding portion 31 is fit in the supporting portion 30, and the topflange 5 or the like is slid to the inner side. Thereby the contactportion 36 of the inner-side locking pawl 34A is locked by the lockingprojection 33 and the contact portion 38 of the front-side locking pawl34B is locked by the locking projection 33. In such a manner, the topflange 5 or the like can be easily attached.

At the time of detachment, the supporting bar portion 39 of thefront-side locking pawl 34B is lifted with the user's finger to come offthe contact portion 38 from the locking projection 33, and the topflange 5 or the like is shifted to the front side. In such a manner, thetop flange 5 or the like can be easily detached.

Since the supporting portion 30 and the sliding portion 31 are set insuch a manner that the interval is narrow on the front side and is wideon the inner side, so that the sliding portion 31 can easily fit withthe supporting portion 30.

Since the top flange 5 or the like is supported by the fitting rails 29Aand the receiving rails 29B, the top flange 5 can be smoothly moved andeasily attached/detached.

In the case where a strong force is applied in the direction of makingthe top flange 5 or the like come off by an abnormal shock of a fall orthe like of the thin plate supporting container 1 in a state where thetop flange 5 or the like is attached, by the support of the supportingbar portion 39 on the front-side locking pawl 34B side, the top flange 5or the like is prevented from coming off. Since the contact portion 38of the front-side locking pawl 34B is provided to the container body 2side as the other member side than the base end portion of thesupporting bar portion 39, the contact portion 38 is pressed in thedirection of strongly pressed against the locking projection 33 and doesnot come off. Thus, even when a strong force is applied to the flange 5or the like due to a shock or the like, the contact portion 38 does notcome off from the locking projection 33, and the supporting bar portion39 supports the top flange 5 or the like with reliability to prevent thetop flange 5 or the like from coming off.

In the latch mechanism 86, at the time of attaching the lid unit 4 tothe container body 2, the user grips the grip 91 of the first arm 87 tolift the lid unit 4 up and covers the container body 2 with the lid unit4 from above. At the time, since the first arm 87 is set at 90° withrespect to the second arm 88 and the second arm 88 is set at 35° withrespect to the container body 2, the grip 91 is positioned on a side ofthe lid unit 4 in a state where the first and second arms 87 and 88swing to each limit, and the grip 91 is in the position at which theuser can easily lift the lid unit 4 in an optimum state. By gripping thegrip 91, the user covers the container body 2 with the lid unit 4. Bystill gripping the grip 91, the grip 91 is pushed downward. The lockingpawl 90 in the base end portion of the first arm 87 comes into contactwith the container body 2 side and the lid unit 4 is fixed to thecontainer body 2.

In the case of detaching the lid unit from the container body, a usergrips the grips 91 of the first arms 87 and pulls the grips 91 to theopposite sides. The locking pawl 90 in the base end portion of the firstarm 87 is detached from the container body 2 side and the lid unit 4 isdisengaged. The user still grips the grips 91 to lift the lid unit 4. Atthis time, the locking pawl 90 in the base end portion swings to aposition in which it does not come into contact with the container body2 in a state where the second arm 88 makes the first arm 87 swing to thelimit. Consequently, even when the user lifts the lid unit 4 up, thelocking pawl 90 does not come into contact with the container body 2,and the lid unit 4 can be easily detached.

As described above, the grip 91 is supported in a position in which itis easily gripped on a side of the lid unit 4, and the locking pawl 90is open to the position where it does not come into contact with thecontainer body 2. Thus, the lid unit 4 can be easily attached/detached.

The semiconductor wafer S fit in the fitting groove 97 of the thin platepressing member 94 is supported by being fit in the fitting groove 97formed at an acute angle. When the fitting groove 97 is formed at anacute angle, the periphery of the semiconductor wafer S is fit in thefitting groove 97 and is securely supported. Therefore, even when astrong shock is applied to the thin plate supporting container 1, theperiphery of the semiconductor wafer S is caught in the fitting groove97 and is securely supported while preventing rotation and a shift ofthe semiconductor wafer S.

Since the pressing band 96 is formed in a wave shape along theperipheries of the semiconductor wafers S, even if the semiconductorwafer S comes off from the fitting groove 97, the semiconductor wafer Sdoes not enter the gap between the pressing bands 96.

Since the V-shaped groove plate piece 15 is detachably attached to thesupporting stand 16 in the body positioning means 11, irrespective ofthe material of the container body 2, the V-shaped groove plate piece 15cab be made of a material by which the fitting projection of themounting stand in the semiconductor fabricating process easily slides.When the fitting projection of the mounting stand used in thesemiconductor fabricating process is fit in the fitting groove 13 of thebody positioning means 11 by the V-shaped groove plate piece 15 made ofa material having low surface friction resistance, smooth sliding isachieved and the thin plate supporting container 1 can be accuratelypositioned.

Since the V-shaped groove plate piece 15 can be detachably attached tothe supporting stand 16, it can be easily replaced in accordance withthe material of the projection on the opposite side.

[Modifications]

(1) Although the gasket 80 is provided on the lid unit 4 side in theforegoing embodiment, it can be provided on the container body 2 side.In this case as well, functions and effects similar to those of theembodiment can be obtained.

(2) Although four upper fitting pieces 57 of the upper fitting portion55 are provided in the embodiment, it is sufficient to provide at leasttwo upper fitting pieces 57 at both ends. The number of the upperfitting pieces 57 is properly set according to the size, requestedstrength, and the like. In this case as well, functions and effectssimilar to those of the foregoing embodiment can be obtained.

(3) Although two sliding and supporting means 27 are provided in theforegoing embodiment, three or more sliding and supporting means may beprovided. Although two guide rails 29 are provided, one guide rail 29 orthree or more guide rails 29 may be provided. In this case as well,functions and effects similar to those of the foregoing embodiment canbe obtained.

(4) Although the supporting stand 16 of the body positioning means 11 isformed so as to construct a part of the fitting groove 13 in theforegoing embodiment, the supporting stand 16 may be also formed so asto construct the whole fitting groove 13.

As described above in detail, the thin plate supporting container of theinvention produces the following effects.

(1) The upper fitting piece has a contact face having a flat plane shapewhich comes into contact with the slotted plate side to thereby positionthe slotted plate in the front/rear direction while preventing swing ofthe slotted plate, and a supporting face for supporting the contact facein a state where the contact face is in contact with the slotted plateside, and the upper receiving piece has a face to be contacted having aflat plane shape which comes into contact with the contact face of theupper fitting piece to thereby position the slotted plate in thefront/rear direction while preventing swing of the slotted plate, and aface to be supported which comes into contact with the supporting faceof the upper fitting piece to thereby support the face to be contactedin a state where the face to be contacted is in contact with the contactface of the opposite side. Accordingly, the slotted plate can besupported with reliability without and accurately positioned in thefront/rear direction while suppressing swing of the slotted plate. Thus,deformation such as a deflection of the slotted plate is prevented andthe slotted plate can be supported in an accurate position.

(2) The upper fitting portion for supporting an upper portion of theslotted plate to the container body side, and the lower fitting portionfor supporting a lower portion of the slotted plate to the containerbody side are provided. The lower fitting portion has: avertical-direction positioning means for positioning the slotted platein the vertical direction; horizontal-direction positioning means forperforming positioning in the horizontal direction; and afront/rear-direction positioning means for performing positioning in thefront/rear direction. Consequently, the lower portion of the slottedplate can be accurately positioned and supported.

(3) The vertical-direction positioning means has a vertical-directionsupporting piece which is provided in a lower portion of each of sidewalls facing each other in the container body and is fit in a lowerportion of the slotted plate, and comes into contact with a lower end ofthe slotted plate, thereby performing positioning in the verticaldirection of the slotted plate. Thus, the lower portion of the slottedplate can be accurately positioned in the vertical direction andsupported.

(4) The horizontal-direction positioning means has a notch formed in alower portion of the slotted plate, and a horizontal-directionsupporting piece which is provided in a lower portion of each of sidewalls facing each other in the container body, fits with the notch inthe lower portion of the slotted plate. Thus, the lower portion of theslotted plate can be accurately positioned in the vertical direction andsupported.

(5) The front/rear direction positioning means has a front/reardirection supporting piece which is provided so as to extend from thelower portion of the slotted plate to a back side of the slotted plate,and fits with the lower portion of a side wall face of the containerbody. Consequently, the lower portion of the slotted plate can beaccurately positioned in the front/rear direction and supported.

(6) A stopper for stopping disengagement to the above of the slottedplate by being locked to the container body side is provided in a lowerportion of the slotted plate. Thus, the slotted plate can be supportedso as not to be disengaged to the above.

(7) The slotted plate is constructed by arranging a plurality of platepieces for supporting the plurality of thin plates one by one, the platepiece is extended from an inner side of the container body to anoutlet/inlet port of the thin plate and is formed so that a portion fromthe inner side to an intermediate position is curved along the peripheryof the thin plate and a portion from the intermediate position to theoutlet/inlet port is along the container body side, on the inner sideand the outlet/inlet port side in the plate piece, thin plate supportingprojections for supporting the thin plates are provided, and the thinplate supporting projection on the outlet/inlet port side is providedaround an intersecting point of an inner periphery of the plate pieceand the periphery of the thin plate. Consequently, a thin plate can bestably supported by the thin plate supporting projections provided onthe inner side and the outlet/inlet port side.

(8) A gasket is provided between the lid unit and the container body,the gasket has a base end supporting portion for supporting the whole bybeing fit to the lid unit side or container body side, and a contactportion formed so as to extend from the base end supporting portion, thecontact portion is formed by being expanded from the base end supportingportion into a flange shape, making its intermediate portion swollenupward, and making an outer periphery folded downward, and theintermediate portion is pressed against the lid unit side or the bodyside in a state where the periphery is in contact with the containerbody side or the lid unit side, thereby making the periphery closelyattached to the container body side or the lid unit side by elasticforce of the contact portion. Thus, air tightness between the lid unitand the container body can be improved.

(9) The thin plate supporting container further includes: a seal piecewhich is provided on the inner side of an upper surface of a base endsupporting portion of the gasket, is extended upward, and comes intocontact with the lid unit side or container body side; and an annulargroove provided on the outer side of the seal piece and absorbingelastic deformation of the seal piece. Thus, air tightness between thegasket and the lid unit can be improved.

(10) A bottom plate of the container body is set so that a gap betweenthe bottom plate and the lower end of the thin plate housed in thecontainer body is set minimum so as to fully absorb the shock.Therefore, the height of the container body can be reduced.

(11) Since the height of the container body is reduced only by an amountcorresponding to reduction in the gap between the bottom plate of thecontainer body and the lower end of the thin plate housed in thecontainer body, the size of the thin plate supporting container can bereduced. Consequently, cushioning used at the time of packing can beincreased, and impact absorbing capability in the case of an impact canbe largely improved.

(12) A locking means of an attaching/detaching mechanism has a lockingprojection provided for the one of members or the other member, and alocking pawl provided for the other or one of members, the locking pawlis constructed by a contact portion which comes into contact with thelocking projection and a supporting bar portion for supporting thecontact portion, and the supporting bar portion is formed so as toextend to the other-side member and to the front-side of the sliding andsupporting means. With the structure, the top flange or the like can beprevented from coming off due to an impact.

(13) Since the contact portion of the locking pawl is provided on theside of the other-side member than the base end portion of thesupporting bar portion, the contact portion does not come off from thelocking projection and the top flange or the like can be prevented fromcoming off due to an impact.

(14) Two supporting portions and two sliding portions of the sliding andsupporting means are provided in parallel, and each of the intervalbetween the supporting portions and the interval between the slidingportions is set to be small on the front side and to be large on theinner side. Thus, the sliding portion can be easily fit in thesupporting portion.

(15) Since guide rails for guiding two members supported by the slidingand supporting means so as to slide and performing positioning in adirection orthogonal to the sliding direction are provided, by beingguided by the guide rails, the top flange or the like can be easilyattached/detached.

(16) A latch mechanism is constructed by a first arm locked to thecontainer body side to fix the lid unit to the container body, and asecond arm swingably supported by the lid unit and swingably supportingthe first arm, the first arm is constructed by a locking pawl which isprovided in a base end portion of the first arm and comes into contactwith the container body side, and a grip which is provided at a tipportion and is positioned in a side of the lid unit in a state where thefirst and second arms swing to the limit, and the second arm swings to aposition where the locking pawl of the base end portion of the first armdoes not come into contact with the container body in a state where thefirst arm swings to the limit. With the structure, the lid unit can beeasily attached/detached to/from the container body.

(17) The first arm is open up to 90° with respect to the second arm andthe second arm is open up to 35° with respect to the container body.Therefore, the first arm can be prevented from coming into contact withthe container body and the grip can be supported in a side of the lidunit and is in a position at which the grip is easily gripped.

(18) A thin plate pressing member is provided on the back face of thelid unit, the thin plate pressing member for supporting thin plates bypressing an upper portion of a thin plate housed in the container bodywhen the lid unit is attached to the container body, fitting grooves ineach of which the thin plate is fit and supported are provided for thethin plate pressing member, and the fitting groove is formed at an acuteangle so as to catch the periphery of the thin plate. Therefore, a thinplate can be supported with reliability.

(19) A thin plate pressing member is provided on the back face of thelid unit, the thin plate pressing member for supporting thin plates bypressing an upper portion of a thin plate housed in the container bodywhen the lid unit is attached to the container body, the thin platepressing member has a number of pressing bands which are arranged inparallel, comes into contact with the periphery of the thin plate, andsupports the thin plates at predetermined intervals one by one, and thepressing bands are formed in a wave shape along the peripheries of thethin plates. Thus, a thin plate can be prevented from entering the gapbetween the pressing bands.

(20) Body positioning means for positioning the whole container body isprovided on the bottom of the container body disposed transversely, andthe body positioning means includes V-shaped groove plate piecesconstructing V-shaped grooves provided in three positions in threedirections on the bottom of the container body, and supporting standsfor supporting the V-shaped groove plate pieces. Therefore, a V-shapedgroove plate piece made of a material different from that of thecontainer body can be attached.

(21) Since the V-shaped groove plate piece is made of a material havinglow surface friction resistance, the projection on the mounting standsmoothly slides on the V-shaped groove plate piece and the thin platesupporting container can be accurately positioned.

(22) Since the V-shaped groove plate piece is detachably attached to thesupporting stand, the V-shaped groove plate piece can be easily replacedwith a V-shaped groove plate made of a different material in accordancewith the material of the projection on the other side.

1. (canceled)
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 12. A thin plate supporting container comprising: a containerbody for housing therein a plurality of thin plates, a lid unit forclosing the container body, slotted plates fixed on side walls facingeach other in the container body and supporting the thin plates housedon the inside from opposing sides, and an attaching/detaching mechanismfor detachably attaching, to the container body, at least one of a topflange for engagement by a container carrying mechanism and a handle tobe held by the user, wherein, the attaching/detaching mechanism includessliding and supporting means for slidably engaging the container body,as a first member, with the top flange or handle as a second member, andlocking means for locking the sliding and supporting means, wherein thesliding and supporting means includes a supporting portion fixed on oneof members and a sliding portion which is fixed on the other member andis to be inserted into the supporting portion from a front side, whereinthe locking means includes a locking projection fixed on the one ofmembers, and a locking pawl fixed on the other of the members, andwherein the locking pawl includes a contact which comes into contactwith the locking projection and a supporting bar for supporting thecontact.
 13. The thin plate supporting container according to claim 12,wherein the contact of the locking pawl is fixed to a distal end of thesupporting bar opposite a base end portion of the supporting bar fixedto one of the members.
 14. The thin plate supporting container accordingto claim 12, wherein two supporting portions and two sliding portions ofthe sliding and supporting means are arranged in parallel, and each ofthe spacings between the supporting portions and between the slidingportions is smaller on the front side than on the inner side.
 15. Thethin plate supporting container according to claim 12, furthercomprising guide rails for guiding the sliding engagement of the twomembers for positioning in a direction orthogonal to the slidingdirection.
 16. (canceled)
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